Megan stared down at Anna like a housemaid. "Why won't you leave my brother alone, so he can find a woman that befits his status? Ever since you married him, he has been miserable and frustrated. Why can't you have some dignity and pack your things and disappear like the nobody you are. I promise, no one will come looking for you." Megan's words pricked Anna's heart like a needle, but she held the brimming tears in her eyes from flowing down till Megan finished and left. Anna quietly went into her husband's room and wept.
She couldn't imagine that the world would be so cruel and soulless. Having never met her mother because she died six months after Anna was born, her father became the very air that she breathed. She and her older brother was showered with unconditional love that many children would do anything to have. But now her father was also gone, and the only person who could take care of her next to her father was her loving older brother, who is in prison.
Anna didn't believe the terrible things they said that her brother did, despite all the evidences presented in court. She knew there was no way her brother is a criminal, it's just impossible. But how such a heinous crime as fraud was pinned on him was still a mystery to her. And now, somehow, she ended up with Maurice Cheung, Haoyu Cheng's grandson. The guy who is heir to his grandfather's business empire is treated like royalty in the house, but the privileges didn't extend to his own wife, who everyone sees as a gold digger.
Anna must have fallen asleep as she cried. But suddenly, she was back home with her father and brother where everything made sense. They were seated beside the luxurious pool of their mansion talking about different things; Girls, guys, politics, chess, and business. Her father, having a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience and another PhD in Mechanical Engineering , would always engage them in mind wobbling games to test their IQ, and also enlighten them. Anna smiled and laughed heartily at her brother's jokes, and wished that that moment would never end. But eventually, all good things come to an end.
"Anna, Anna, wake up!" She jolted from the bed and glanced at the person who woke her up. It was none other than Maurice, her husband. The 5'6 tall, dangerously handsome man stared at her like a dirty laundry occupying space.
It took a moment for Anna to regain full cognition, but when she did, she noticed that the pillow had been soaked in tears. So she quickly flipped it over, hoping that Maurice didn't see it. "So you have been in bed all day doing nothing. How typical of you." Maurice said disdainfully, without even noticing her bloodshot eyes. "Can you get up from that bed, and go make yourself useful." Maurice scolded. Anna felt the weight of his words crushing her heart like a grape.
Someone who claims to be her husband couldn't even notice that she had been crying. The thought was unbearable. But she got up from the bed, and quietly went to the bathroom to put herself in order. When she left, Maurice growled angrily.
Anna had become a nuisance and an obstacle to his desire to marry the fabulous and sexy Yu Yan Xing. And he can't easily divorce her because of the relationship between his grandfather and her uncle. 'I know I desired her when I was younger, but she's now a won trophy. I have to get another.' He thought. Taking the small bell on the bedside, he rang for a servant, exhaled deeply and laid down on the bed.
Later that evening, during dinner, Anna was absent. And like Megan promised, nobody noticed. She took an evening stroll to get away from the malice and negativity all around her, even if it's for a few hours. As she walked through the beautifully lit streets of Central Park, in Pudong, she wondered how exactly it felt to be in love. Her marriage to Maurice Cheung was a selfish arrangement between her uncle and his grandfather, for reasons Anna couldn't comprehend.
She didn't even know why she married him. Maybe, it was his looks, or his tenacity in business, or his calm and soft nature. But for whatever reason she agreed to marry him, his wealth and family name wasn't part of it.
As she dawdled down Central Park, the night autumn breeze blew her wool cowl round her neck, like it wanted to strangle her, then blew it off her neck. As it did, the cold gripped Anna's neck like an abusive husband. She quickly turned to find her cowl, but to her utmost surprise, it was gone. As she searched for the cowl, her neck was ravaged even further by the cold. The only option at this point was to turn back to the miserable place she calls home.
But suddenly, someone tapped her shoulder from behind, and she quickly turned. "I believe this is yours." A handsome man stood before her like a knight to the rescue. He had the kind of face that stopped you in your tracks. Anna's sudden pause in his natural expression was a reflex action of seeing the breathtaking physical features of a man, who looks like he was sculpted by Michelangelo himself.
This was followed by overcompensating with a nonchalant gaze and a weak smile. Anna felt like her emotions were on autopilot, and she couldn't control them. Then she blushed without warning, and felt completely helpless. For someone who has never stuttered in her life before, the words that she spoke came out like water drops.
"Ye..e..y..e" The young man's confused expression about her stuttering gave her some confidence. "Yes, it's mine." He smiled. As he did, Anna felt a tingling sensation all over her body that she couldn't explain. "I hope you are not headed somewhere far in this cold? Since you are on foot." Anna opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Her heart was beating like a Cherokee drum, completely out of control.
Sensing her uneasiness, the young man stepped closer to her, and offered a handshake. "I am Ji-Hoon." Anna thought she was hallucinating when her right hand quickly shook his hand. Her mind was sceptical about the stranger, but her body was in complete control. When she finally spoke, her voice sounded like drops of dew on green leaves. "I am Anna". Ji-Hoon smiled again. "It's a pleasure to meet you Anna. Where are you headed?"
For a moment, Anna stared bemusedly at Ji-Hoon, wondering if he fell from the heavens. 'What perfect features in a man'. She thought. "Uh..m, I was actually heading to the grocery store down the street. Wanted to buy a few things."
Ji-Hoon squinted at her, like her facial expression was saying one thing and her mouth was saying another. But he exhaled and nodded. "Okay, why don't I walk you to the grocery store. You shouldn't be walking down Central Park alone by the way. It could be dangerous." Anna glared at Ji-Hoon in surprise.
Apart from her brother, nobody has ever looked out for her since their Dad died. Anna felt like she was on cloud nine. So when Ji-Hoon offered to help wrap the cowl round her neck, she agreed without hesitation. As he did, Anna felt again like a little girl who her father would go to the ends of the earth to keep her safe.
Both of them walked side by side to the grocery store down the street, talking and smiling at intervals at each other. Ji-Hoon couldn't believe that a woman could be beautiful and humble at the same time. To him, the combination was like trying to mix oil and water. He was used to meeting beautiful ladies who behave like they literally have castles in the clouds, while the rest of the world are beneath them. But Anna's decorum and humble disposition has left him spellbound.
Outside the store, after shopping, Anna saw a middle-aged man talking to his daughter who should be between twelve and fourteen years old. The man knelt infront of his daughter, trying to explain to her why she couldn't have the couverture chocolate bar she really craved. Unfortunately, the store ran out of chocolate hours before they both arrived.
The man patiently explained the process of logistics and supply chain management of chocolate from start to finish in a way a fourteen year old would understand. As Anna watched, she remembered her own father's tenderness and care. How after spilling oil on her body and couldn't clean it, she would start crying.
Her father would make her laugh as he cleaned up the oil. Even when she falls and injures herself while playing with her brother, he admits first aid with such tenderness that she doesn't feel any pain. The thought made her sad and couldn't help sobbing. This made Ji-Hoon confused.
"What's the problem? Did I do something wrong?" He asked. It took Anna a moment to center herself to answer the question. "No, you have done nothing wrong." Her answer was reassuring, but Ji-Hoon wasn't satisfied. "Then why on earth are you crying?" Anna wasn't sure if it was the right time to tell Ji-Hoon about her past, and current predicament. But there was a level of inexplicable comfort she felt being around him, despite just meeting him for the first time.
"It's a long story Ji-Hoon. One that I wouldn't be comfortable to tell right now." Ji-Hoon looked at her lush green eyes, and couldn't help but wonder if he was dreaming. 'Damn! she's beautiful'. He thought. "Okay, but I will wait till you are comfortable to talk about it." His words ignited a flame inside of Anna. And without anticipation, she hugged Ji-Hoon who held her firmly in return.
As Ji-Hoon walked her home, they talked about a lot of things; art, politics, history, science, and artificial intelligence. They connected so deeply that neither one of them wanted to part ways. Anna has found her prince charming and Ji-Hoon, his heartbeat. Though knowing very little about each other, there was no room for introspection. Like two people who have known each other for a long time, it felt right.
When Anna got to the front of the house, she stood for a moment to contemplate if was a good idea to enter or go with Ji-Hoon. For the place, despite its beauty was more of a prison than a home.
The 5000 square foot property was magnificent. With features that includes; two tennis court, two swimming pools, two basketball courts, a movie theatre, a large foyer entrance and bespoke staircases.
As Anna entered the house, there was an unusual tranquility that unnerved her. Since she arrived the house as a wife to Maurice, there hasn't been a time when the house was quiet. Anna didn't bother sauntering to find out the reason for the sequestered house. She just went straight to her bedroom upstairs.
But when she got there, Anna saw something unexpected and doleful. Maurice was making out with one of the maids in the house, right there on their matrimonial bed. Her presence seemed inconsequential, as they continued with their canoodling. The maid glanced at Anna disdainfully and continued with her pleasure.
Normally, the scenerio was enough to unleash the beast in any wife, but Anna wasn't perturbed at all. She simply left the room and went to the guest room. After having a warm bath, Anna laid down on the bed to sleep but couldn't. There was one thought that wouldn't let her sleep. Anna was thinking about Ji-Hoon.
Since meeting him that evening, her life seems to make more sense. Suddenly, she no longer felt lonely. And the hole in her heart, wasn't so wide and deep anymore. As she closed her eyes to sleep, the thought of Ji-Hoon made her smile.
She decided to find out more about him if they were going to be together. If only she knew who Ji-Hoon is, she wouldn't be so sure about her emotions.